System and method for off-road driving assistance for a vehicle

ABSTRACT

A vehicle control system for a vehicle may include a controller, a single pedal and a torque control module. The controller may be operably coupled to components and/or sensors of the vehicle to receive information indicative of operational intent of an operator of the vehicle and information indicative of vehicle status. The single pedal may be configured to provide the information indicative of operational intent. The torque control module may be configured to generate both a propulsive torque request and a braking torque request based on the information indicative of the operational intent and the information indicative of vehicle status.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Example embodiments generally relate to vehicle control algorithms and,more particularly, relate to a system and method for providing anoff-road driver assistance feature.

BACKGROUND

Navigating off-road terrain with substantial obstacles (sometimesreferred to as “rock-crawling”) can often require coordinatedapplication of both propulsive and braking torque. Traditionally,drivers control wheel speeds under such circumstances by modulating theaccelerator and brake pedals simultaneously, which is known as“two-pedal driving.” This technique can be difficult to employ fornovices.

Thus, it may be desirable to develop a driver assistance feature thatcan be used to obviate the need for two-pedal driving.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF SOME EXAMPLES

In accordance with an example embodiment, a vehicle control system for avehicle may be provided. The system may include a controller, a singlepedal and a torque control module. The controller may be operablycoupled to components and/or sensors of the vehicle to receiveinformation indicative of operational intent of an operator of thevehicle and information indicative of vehicle status. The single pedalmay be configured to provide the information indicative of operationalintent. The torque control module may be configured to generate both apropulsive torque request and a braking torque request based on theinformation indicative of the operational intent and the informationindicative of vehicle status.

In another example embodiment, torque control module of a vehiclecontrol system may be provided. The torque control module may include apropulsive torque determiner configured to determine a propulsive torquerequest based on pedal position, vehicle speed and vehicle pitch, and abraking torque determiner configured to determine a braking torquerequest based on the pedal position, a rate of change of the pedalposition, the vehicle speed and the vehicle pitch. The torque controlmodule may be configured to determine an instantaneous net torquerequest as a combination of the propulsive torque request and thebraking torque request based on the pedal position of a single pedal.

In another example embodiment, a method of providing a propulsive torquerequest to a propulsion system of a vehicle and a braking torque requestto a braking system of the vehicle may be provided. The method mayinclude receiving information indicative of operational intent of anoperator of the vehicle relating to both the propulsive torque requestand the braking torque request based on operation of a single pedal ofthe vehicle, receiving information indicative of vehicle status, andgenerating both the propulsive torque request and the braking torquerequest based on the information indicative of the operational intentand the information indicative of vehicle status.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will nowbe made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn toscale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a vehicle control system inaccordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of some components of the vehiclecontrol system of FIG. 1 in accordance with an example embodiment; and

FIG. 3 illustrates a method of controlling a vehicle in accordance withan example embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Some example embodiments now will be described more fully hereinafterwith reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not allexample embodiments are shown. Indeed, the examples described andpictured herein should not be construed as being limiting as to thescope, applicability or configuration of the present disclosure. Rather,these example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure willsatisfy applicable legal requirements. Like reference numerals refer tolike elements throughout. Furthermore, as used herein, the term “or” isto be interpreted as a logical operator that results in true wheneverone or more of its operands are true. As used herein, operable couplingshould be understood to relate to direct or indirect connection that, ineither case, enables functional interconnection of components that areoperably coupled to each other.

As noted above, two-pedal driving, or at least driving on terrain withsubstantial obstacles (e.g., rock-crawling) presents certain challenges.For example, a first challenge posed by this operational context is theneed to quickly transition from the significant propulsive forcerequired for a drive wheel to overcome or climb to the apex of anobstacle to the significant brake torque required to preventovershooting the driver's intended wheel positions after the vehicle aspassed the apex and is on the descending side of the obstacle. Anotherchallenge posed by this operational context is the balancing of brakeand propulsive torques while launching the vehicle from a standstillposition on a large grade, or on the ascending side of a significantobstacle. In this regard, it is typically desirable to enable a smoothforward vehicle motion without the vehicle rolling backward at all.

Some example embodiments described herein may obviate the need to learnor practice two-pedal driving by providing a driver assistance featurethat can control the net torque applied at the wheels of the vehicle inorder to control the wheel speeds. Some example embodiments maytherefore provide a control system that allows the driver to directlycontrol the net torque applied by the vehicle to the wheels using only asingle control pedal (e.g., accelerator pedal or brake pedal). Simplerand possibly also superior control may therefore be achieved to assistdrivers operating in off-road contexts. Moreover, while the controlmethods described herein could be employed primarily or evencontinuously, some example embodiments may provide the ability to selectthe employment of a single control pedal operable as described herein asa mode of operation. As such, two-pedal driving may be possible untilthe mode of control associated with example embodiments has beenselected. As such, some example embodiments may provide an improvedsystem for vehicle control that can yield benefits in both customerconfidence and vehicle capability. As a result, vehicle performance anddriver satisfaction may also be improved.

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a control system 100 of an exampleembodiment. The components of the control system 100 may be incorporatedinto a vehicle 110 (e.g., via being operably coupled to a chassis of thevehicle 110, various components of the vehicle 110 and/or electroniccontrol systems of the vehicle 110). Of note, although the components ofFIG. 1 may be operably coupled to the vehicle 110, it should beappreciated that such connection may be either direct or indirect.Moreover, some of the components of the control system 100 may beconnected to the vehicle 110 via intermediate connections to othercomponents either of the chassis or of other electronic and/ormechanical systems or components.

The control system 100 may include an input device in the form of acontrol pedal (or simply a pedal 120). The pedal 120 may be similar to aconventional brake pedal or accelerator pedal pivotally mounted to thefloor of the vehicle 110 in some cases. However, the pedal 120 couldalternatively be hand operated, a single dedicated foot operated pedal,or any other operable member via which an operator 125 may provide aninput indicative of an intent of the operator relative to controllingnet torque for application to the wheels of the vehicle 110.

The control system 100 may also include a torque control module 130,which may be part of or otherwise operably coupled to a controller 140.The torque control module 130 may be configured to determine net torqueas described herein based on inputs from any or all of the controller140, the pedal 120 or other components of the vehicle 110. In somecases, the controller 140 may be part of an electronic control system ofthe vehicle 110 that is configured to perform other tasks related or notrelated to propulsive and braking control or performance management.However, the controller 140 could be a dedicated or standalonecontroller in some cases.

In an example embodiment, the controller 140 may receive informationthat is used to determine vehicle status from various components orsubassemblies 150 of the vehicle 100. Additionally or alternatively,various sensors that may be operably coupled to the components orsubassemblies 150 may be included, and may provide input to thecontroller 140 that is used in determining vehicle status. Such sensorsmay be part of a sensor network 160 and sensors of the sensor network160 may be operably coupled to the controller 140 (and/or the componentsor subassemblies 150) via a vehicle communication bus (e.g., acontroller area network (CAN) bus) 170.

The components or subassemblies 150 may include, for example, a brakeassembly, a propulsion system and/or a wheel assembly of the vehicle110. The brake assembly may be configured to provide braking inputs tobraking components of the vehicle 110 based on a braking torquedetermined by the controller 140 and/or torque control module 130. Thepropulsion system may include a gas engine, electric motor, or any othersuitable propulsion device. The controller 140 and/or torque controlmodule 130 may be configured to determine propulsive torque inputs forprovision to the propulsion system to apply propulsive torque to thewheels of the wheel assembly of the vehicle 110. Moreover, one or morecorresponding sensors of the sensor network 160 that may be operablycoupled to the brake assembly and/or the wheel assembly may provideinformation relating to brake torque, brake torque rate, vehiclevelocity, vehicle acceleration, front/rear wheel speeds, vehicle pitch,etc. Other examples of the components or subassemblies 150 and/orcorresponding sensors of the sensor network 160 may provide informationrelating to yaw, lateral G force, throttle position, selector buttonpositions associated with chassis and/or vehicle control selections,etc.

Accordingly, for example, the controller 140 may be able to receivenumerous different parameters, indications and other information thatmay be related to or indicative of different situations or conditionsassociated with vehicle status. The controller 140 may also receiveinformation indicative of the intent of the operator 125 relative tocontrol of various aspects of operation of the vehicle 110 and then beconfigured to use the information received in association with theexecution of one or more control algorithms that may be used to provideinstructions to the torque control module 130 in order to controlapplication of net torque to the wheels of the wheel assembly of thevehicle 110.

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of various components of the controlsystem 100 in greater detail. In this regard, for example, FIG. 2illustrates example interactions between the controller 140 and thetorque control module 130 relative to information received thereby(e.g., from the sensor network 160, from various ones of thecomponents/subassemblies 150, and/or from the operator 125). Processingcircuitry (e.g., a processor 210 and memory 220) at the controller 140may process the information received by running one or more controlalgorithms. The control algorithms may include instructions that can bestored by the memory 220 for retrieval and execution by the processor210. In some cases, the memory 220 may further store one or more tables(e.g., look up tables) and various calculations and/or applications maybe executed using information in the tables and/or the information asdescribed herein.

The processor 210 may be configured to execute the control algorithms inseries or in parallel. However, in an example embodiment, the processor210 may be configured to execute multiple control algorithms in parallel(e.g., simultaneously) and substantially in real time. The controlalgorithms may be configured to perform various calculations based onthe information received regarding specific conditions of vehiclecomponents in the torque control module 130. The control algorithms maytherefore execute various functions based on the information received,and generate outputs to drive the control of net torque applied at thewheels of the vehicle 110. The torque control module 130 may itself be acontrol algorithm, or may include control algorithms in the form offunctional modules (or sub-modules) configured to perform specificfunctions for which they are configured relating to control of thevehicle 110 in the manner described herein.

In an example embodiment, the information upon which the controlalgorithms operate may include pedal position 230 (e.g., of the pedal120 of FIG. 1). In this regard, since the pedal 120 may pivot, compressor otherwise have a range of motion based on input provided by theoperator 125, one or more position sensors (e.g., a Hall effect sensor)may be used to determine pedal position 230. The pedal position 230 maythen be provided to the torque control module 130 for use as describedin greater detail below. Pedal position 230 may be an example ofinformation indicative of operational intent of the operator 125. Asnoted below, the rate of change of this information may also beindicative of the operational intent.

The information upon which the control algorithms operate may alsoinclude vehicle speed 232 and vehicle pitch 234. Vehicle speed 232 maybe provided from a speedometer of the vehicle 110, from globalpositioning system (GPS) information, or any other suitable source.Vehicle pitch 234 may be calculated or otherwise provided based on oneor more accelerometers located in the vehicle 110 (e.g., along alongitudinal centerline of the vehicle 110) and/or based on wheel speedinformation. However, any suitable way of measuring vehicle pitch 234 interms of an angle of the longitudinal centerline of the vehicle 110relative to a flat ground reference may alternatively be employed. Thevehicle pitch 234 may be useful for inferring, for example, when thevehicle 110 is on the ascending side of an obstacle, and when thevehicle 110 is instead over the apex of the obstacle and on thedescending side thereof. The vehicle speed 232 and vehicle pitch 234 maybe examples of information indicative of vehicle status.

In an example embodiment, the torque control module 130 may beconfigured to include a propulsive torque determiner 240. In general,the propulsive torque determiner 240 may be configured to receiveinformation indicative of operational intent of the operator 125 (e.g.,pedal position 230) and information indicative of vehicle status (e.g.,vehicle speed 232 and vehicle pitch 234) in order to determine apropulsive torque 242 to be applied to a propulsion system 244 of thevehicle 110 (e.g., a gasoline engine, electric motor, and/or the like).In other words, propulsive torque 242 may be considered to berepresentative of a propulsive torque request, or a request for acorresponding determined amount of propulsive torque.

In some example embodiments, the propulsive torque determiner 240 maydetermine the propulsive torque 242 using a propulsive torque map 246.The propulsive torque map 246 may be constructed to balance theinformation indicative of vehicle status with the information indicativeof operational intent of the operator 125 in order to infer the desiredpropulsive torque of the operator 125. In an example embodiment, thepropulsive torque map 246 may include a base map that maps pedalposition 230 and vehicle speed 232 to a base propulsive torque. Thisbase map may then be adjusted based on the vehicle pitch 234 to accountfor whether the vehicle 110 is on the ascending or descending side of anobstacle.

In an example embodiment, the propulsive torque map 246 may be generatedor otherwise provided by the manufacturer. The propulsive torque map 246may be generated based on test data gathered over many hours of testingin numerous different conditions and situations. However, the torquecontrol module 130 of some example embodiments may further be configuredto employ machine learning techniques to adjust the propulsive torquemap 246 during operation. The propulsive torque map 246 may therefore bedynamically adjusted automatically by the torque control module 130 overtime based on updated operational information. Moreover, the propulsivetorque map 246 may be calibrated (e.g., wirelessly or via wiredconnection to a diagnostic system) over time based on manufacturerupdated information during routine maintenance, or upon request of theoperator 125 for such updates. The calibration may involve receipt ofperformance data from multiple vehicles and analysis of such data tothen provide calibrations or other dynamic adjustments that may benefitan entire fleet or population of vehicles that include the torquecontrol module 130 of example embodiments.

In an example embodiment, the torque control module 130 may also beconfigured to include a braking torque determiner 250. In general, thebraking torque determiner 250 may be configured to receive informationindicative of operational intent of the operator 125 (e.g., pedalposition 230) and information indicative of vehicle status (e.g.,vehicle speed 232 and vehicle pitch 234) in order to determine a brakingtorque 252 to be applied to a braking system 254 of the vehicle 110. Inother words, braking torque 252 may be considered to be representativeof a braking torque request, or a request for a corresponding determinedamount of braking torque. The braking torque determiner 250 may also beconfigured to receive information indicative of a rate of change in thepedal position 230 (e.g., rate of pedal change information 256) via arate determiner 257.

The rate determiner 257 may use pedal position 230 in order to determinethe rate of pedal change information 256. In this regard, for example,the rate determiner 257 may be configured to filter pedal position 230to determine if the operator 125 is quickly changing a position of thepedal 120. Quick changing of the position of the pedal 120 can beinferred as an intent to quickly increase braking torque 252.Accordingly, for example, the rate determiner 257 may include or beembodied as a series of filters that enable detection of certain typesof changes in position of the pedal 120. In this regard, filterconstants can be tuned such that a fast change in position of the pedal120 at a low speed with large forces on the vehicle 110 due to gravity(i.e., associated with being on the descending side of the obstacle)translate into a larger and faster increase in the braking torque 252.

In this regard, for example, the braking torque determiner 250 maydetermine the braking torque 252 using a braking torque map 258. Thebraking torque map 258 may be constructed to balance the informationindicative of vehicle status with the information indicative ofoperational intent of the operator 125 in order to infer the desiredbraking torque of the operator 125. In an example embodiment, thebraking torque map 258 may include a base map that maps pedal position230, rate of pedal change information 256 and vehicle speed 232 to abase braking torque. This base map may then be adjusted based on thevehicle pitch 234 to account for whether the vehicle 110 is on theascending or descending side of an obstacle. At low speeds, the brakingtorque 252 may be intended to dampen vehicle motion and prevent vehicleroll back.

In an example embodiment, the braking torque map 258 may be generated orotherwise provided by the manufacturer. The braking torque map 258 maybe generated based on test data gathered over many hours of testing innumerous different conditions and situations. However, as discussedabove, the torque control module 130 of some example embodiments mayfurther be configured to employ machine learning techniques to adjustthe braking torque map 258 during operation. The braking torque map 258may therefore also be dynamically adjusted automatically by the torquecontrol module 130 over time based on updated operational information.Moreover, the braking torque map 258 may be calibrated (e.g., wirelesslyor via wired connection to a diagnostic system) over time based onmanufacturer updated information during routine maintenance, or uponrequest of the operator 125 for such updates. The calibration mayinvolve receipt of performance data from multiple vehicles and analysisof such data to then provide calibrations or other dynamic adjustmentsthat may benefit an entire fleet or population of vehicles that includethe torque control module 130 of example embodiments.

As can be appreciated from the descriptions of FIGS. 1 and 2, theoperation of the vehicle 110 using the control system 100 describedherein may be accomplished with only one pedal (i.e., pedal 120). Theneed for two-pedal driving may therefore be obviated. However, exampleembodiments could still be employed in a vehicle that has two pedals(e.g., a brake pedal 270 and an accelerator pedal 272) in some cases.For example, the operator 125 may make a mode selection 280, which maybe input into the controller 140 to change from two-pedal (standard)operation to one-pedal operation associated with the driver assistfunctions described herein. The mode selection 280 may be made via abutton, switch, selector or other dedicated operational member that theoperator 125 can select/operate. However, in other cases, the modeselection 280 may be made via navigation of menu options on a visualdisplay.

Regardless of how selected, when the mode selection 280 is made, thevehicle 110 may be shifted from a normal or standard mode of operation(which is shown by the dashed lines in FIG. 2) to a driver assisted modeof operation that includes the off-road driving assistance that isdescribed herein (which is shown in solid lines in FIG. 2). The shift tothe driver assisted mode of operation (or off-road mode of operation)may include physical modifications of couplings and connections of thevehicle 110, and/or may include only functional or electrical changes ininputs and outputs to various components. In this regard, for example,the normal or standard mode of operation may include the brake pedal 270being operably coupled to the braking system 254 to apply brake torqueto the braking system 254 proportional to the amount of depression ordeflection of the brake pedal 270. In some cases, the operable couplingmay be indirect, and other components or systems (e.g., an anti-lockbrake (ABS) module) may be included in the operable coupling. Similarly,the normal or standard mode of operation may include the acceleratorpedal 272 being operably coupled to the propulsion system 244 (e.g.,directly or indirectly) to apply propulsive torque to the propulsionsystem 244 proportional to the amount of depression or deflection of theaccelerator pedal 272. However, when the mode selection 280 is made,only one of the accelerator pedal 272 or the brake pedal 270 will beoperably coupled to the braking system 254 and the propulsion system 244via the torque control module 130. In the example shown, the acceleratorpedal 272 becomes the pedal 120 (i.e., the single pedal that is operablycoupled to both the braking system 254 and the propulsion system 244) ofFIG. 1.

As noted above, the control algorithms described above (and potentiallyothers as well) may be executed in parallel and in real time by thecontroller 140. The execution of the control algorithms in parallel witheach other may result in multiple potentially different directions(i.e., increasing/decreasing) and magnitudes of torque requests.Accordingly, the propulsive torque 242 and the braking torque 252 maycombine to define a net torque value that dictates how the vehicle 110operates at each instant in time. As such, example embodiments may allowa single pedal (i.e., pedal 120) to be used to define a net torque value(or request) for the vehicle 110 during operation.

Example embodiments may therefore enable full control of the net torquerequest made of the vehicle 110 for many different situations when themode selection 280 is made, thereby providing the ability to selectenhanced operation for optimal off-road driving capability that canenhance driver confidence and vehicle capabilities. Example embodimentsmay also enable the user or manufacturers to have the ability toconfigure various aspects of the user experience by changing variousparameters relating to propulsive control, brake control, etc.

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of one example method of operating avehicle that may be executed by the controller 140 of an exampleembodiment. In this regard, as shown in FIG. 3, the method mayeffectively be a method of providing a propulsive torque request to apropulsion system of a vehicle and a braking torque request to a brakingsystem of the vehicle. The method may include receiving informationindicative of operational intent of an operator of the vehicle relatingto both the propulsive torque request and the braking torque requestbased on operation of a single pedal of the vehicle at operation 300.The method may further include receiving information indicative ofvehicle status at operation 310, and generating both the propulsivetorque request and the braking torque request based on the informationindicative of the operational intent and the information indicative ofvehicle status at operation 320.

The method of some embodiments may include additional operations, ormodifications/augmentations to the methods listed above. The additionaloperations and modifications/augmentations may be added in anycombination with each other. For example, the vehicle may have a normalmode of operation in which the propulsion system is operably coupled toan accelerator pedal for providing the propulsive torque request, and abrake pedal is operably coupled to a braking system for providing thebraking torque request. Within this context, the method may furtherinclude an optional initial operation (shown in dashed lines in FIG. 3)of, in response to a mode selection to a driver assist mode, employingonly one of the brake pedal or the accelerator pedal as the single pedalto provide the propulsive torque request to the propulsion system andthe braking torque request to the braking system at operation 330. Insome cases, the information indicative of vehicle status may includevehicle speed and vehicle pitch, and the information indicative ofoperational intent may include pedal position of the single pedal and arate of change of the pedal position. In an example embodiment,generating both the propulsive torque request and the braking torquerequest may include applying a propulsive torque map defining a base mapof propulsive torque based on the pedal position and the vehicle speed,and adjusting the base map based on the vehicle pitch to determine thepropulsive torque request, and applying a braking torque map defining abase map of braking torque based on the pedal position, the rate ofchange of the pedal position, and the vehicle speed, and adjusting thebase map based on the vehicle pitch to determine the braking torquerequest. In some cases, the method may further include the optionaloperation (shown in dashed lines in FIG. 3) of dynamically adjusting orcalibrating the propulsive torque map or the braking torque map atoperation 340.

A vehicle control system for a vehicle may therefore be provided. Thesystem may include a controller, a single pedal and a torque controlmodule. The controller may be operably coupled to components and/orsensors of the vehicle to receive information indicative of operationalintent of an operator of the vehicle and information indicative ofvehicle status. The single pedal may be configured to provide theinformation indicative of operational intent. The torque control modulemay be configured to generate both a propulsive torque request and abraking torque request based on the information indicative of theoperational intent and the information indicative of vehicle status.

The system of some embodiments may include additional features,modifications, augmentations and/or the like to achieve furtherobjectives or enhance performance of the system. The additionalfeatures, modifications, augmentations and/or the like may be added inany combination with each other. Below is a list of various additionalfeatures, modifications, and augmentations that can each be addedindividually or in any combination with each other. For example, theinformation indicative of vehicle status may include vehicle speed andvehicle pitch, and the information indicative of operational intent mayinclude pedal position of the single pedal. In an example embodiment,the torque control module may include a propulsive torque determinerconfigured to determine the propulsive torque request based on the pedalposition, the vehicle speed and the vehicle pitch. In some cases, thepropulsive torque determiner may include a propulsive torque mapdefining a base map of propulsive torque based on the pedal position andthe vehicle speed, and the base map may be adjusted based on the vehiclepitch to determine the propulsive torque request. In an exampleembodiment, the propulsive torque map may be dynamically adjustable bythe controller during use, or may be configured to be calibrated duringvehicle maintenance. In some cases, the braking control module mayinclude a braking torque determiner configured to determine the brakingtorque request based on the pedal position, a rate of change of thepedal position, the vehicle speed and the vehicle pitch. In an exampleembodiment, the braking torque determiner may include a braking torquemap defining a base map of braking torque based on the pedal position,the rate of change of the pedal position, and the vehicle speed. Thebase map may be adjusted based on the vehicle pitch to determine thebraking torque request. In some cases, the braking torque map may bedynamically adjustable by the controller during use, or is configured tobe calibrated during vehicle maintenance. In an example embodiment, thebraking torque determiner may employ a high pass filter to detect fastchanges in the pedal position as the rate of change of the pedalposition. In some cases, the vehicle may include a normal mode ofoperation in which a propulsion system may be operably coupled to anaccelerator pedal for providing propulsive torque requests, and a brakepedal may be operably coupled to a braking system for providing brakingtorque requests. The controller may be configured to employ one of thebrake pedal or the accelerator pedal as the single pedal and employ thetorque control module to provide the propulsive torque requests to thepropulsion system and the braking torque requests to the braking systemin response to a mode selection to a driver assist mode.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the inventions set forthherein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which theseinventions pertain having the benefit of the teachings presented in theforegoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is tobe understood that the inventions are not to be limited to the specificembodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments areintended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.Moreover, although the foregoing descriptions and the associateddrawings describe exemplary embodiments in the context of certainexemplary combinations of elements and/or functions, it should beappreciated that different combinations of elements and/or functions maybe provided by alternative embodiments without departing from the scopeof the appended claims. In this regard, for example, differentcombinations of elements and/or functions than those explicitlydescribed above are also contemplated as may be set forth in some of theappended claims. In cases where advantages, benefits or solutions toproblems are described herein, it should be appreciated that suchadvantages, benefits and/or solutions may be applicable to some exampleembodiments, but not necessarily all example embodiments. Thus, anyadvantages, benefits or solutions described herein should not be thoughtof as being critical, required or essential to all embodiments or tothat which is claimed herein. Although specific terms are employedherein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and notfor purposes of limitation.

That which is claimed:
 1. A vehicle control system for a vehicle, thesystem comprising: a controller operably coupled to components and/orsensors of the vehicle to receive information indicative of operationalintent of an operator of the vehicle and information indicative ofvehicle status; a single pedal configured to provide the informationindicative of operational intent; and a torque control module configuredto generate both a propulsive torque request and a braking torquerequest based on the information indicative of the operational intentand the information indicative of vehicle status.
 2. The system of claim1, wherein the information indicative of vehicle status comprisesvehicle speed and vehicle pitch, and wherein the information indicativeof operational intent comprises pedal position of the single pedal. 3.The system of claim 2, wherein the torque control module comprises apropulsive torque determiner configured to determine the propulsivetorque request based on the pedal position, the vehicle speed and thevehicle pitch.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the propulsive torquedeterminer comprises a propulsive torque map defining a base map ofpropulsive torque based on the pedal position and the vehicle speed, andwherein the base map is adjusted based on the vehicle pitch to determinethe propulsive torque request.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein thepropulsive torque map is dynamically adjustable by the controller duringuse, or is configured to be calibrated during vehicle maintenance. 6.The system of claim 3, wherein the braking control module comprises abraking torque determiner configured to determine the braking torquerequest based on the pedal position, a rate of change of the pedalposition, the vehicle speed and the vehicle pitch.
 7. The system ofclaim 6, wherein the braking torque determiner comprises a brakingtorque map defining a base map of braking torque based on the pedalposition, the rate of change of the pedal position, and the vehiclespeed, and wherein the base map is adjusted based on the vehicle pitchto determine the braking torque request.
 8. The system of claim 7,wherein the braking torque map is dynamically adjustable by thecontroller during use, or is configured to be calibrated during vehiclemaintenance.
 9. The system of claim 6, wherein the braking torquedeterminer employs a high pass filter to detect fast changes in thepedal position as the rate of change of the pedal position.
 10. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises a normal mode ofoperation in which a propulsion system is operably coupled to anaccelerator pedal for providing propulsive torque requests, and a brakepedal is operably coupled to a braking system for providing brakingtorque requests, and wherein the controller is configured to employ oneof the brake pedal or the accelerator pedal as the single pedal andemploy the torque control module to provide the propulsive torquerequests to the propulsion system and the braking torque requests to thebraking system in response to a mode selection to a driver assist mode.11. A torque control module of a vehicle control system, the torquecontrol module comprising: a propulsive torque determiner configured todetermine a propulsive torque request based on pedal position, vehiclespeed and vehicle pitch; and a braking torque determiner configured todetermine a braking torque request based on the pedal position, a rateof change of the pedal position, the vehicle speed and the vehiclepitch, wherein the torque control module is configured to determine aninstantaneous net torque request as a combination of the propulsivetorque request and the braking torque request based on the pedalposition of a single pedal.
 12. The torque control module of claim 11,wherein the propulsive torque determiner comprises a propulsive torquemap defining a base map of propulsive torque based on the pedal positionand the vehicle speed, and wherein the base map is adjusted based on thevehicle pitch to determine the propulsive torque request.
 13. The torquecontrol module of claim 12, wherein the braking torque determinercomprises a braking torque map defining a base map of braking torquebased on the pedal position, the rate of change of the pedal position,and the vehicle speed, and wherein the base map is adjusted based on thevehicle pitch to determine the braking torque request.
 14. The torquecontrol module of claim 13, wherein the propulsive torque map or thebraking torque map is dynamically adjustable by the controller duringuse, or is configured to be calibrated during vehicle maintenance. 15.The torque control module of claim 11, wherein the vehicle comprises anormal mode of operation in which a propulsion system is operablycoupled to an accelerator pedal for providing propulsive torquerequests, and a brake pedal is operably coupled to a braking system forproviding braking torque requests, and wherein, in response to a modeselection to a driver assist mode, the torque control module isconfigured to employ one of the brake pedal or the accelerator pedal asthe single pedal and employ the torque control module to provide thepropulsive torque requests to the propulsion system and the brakingtorque requests to the braking system.
 16. A method of providing apropulsive torque request to a propulsion system of a vehicle and abraking torque request to a braking system of the vehicle, the methodcomprising: receiving information indicative of operational intent of anoperator of the vehicle relating to both the propulsive torque requestand the braking torque request based on operation of a single pedal ofthe vehicle; receiving information indicative of vehicle status; andgenerating both the propulsive torque request and the braking torquerequest based on the information indicative of the operational intentand the information indicative of vehicle status.
 17. The method ofclaim 16, wherein the vehicle comprises a normal mode of operation inwhich the propulsion system is operably coupled to an accelerator pedalfor providing the propulsive torque request, and a brake pedal isoperably coupled to a braking system for providing the braking torquerequest, and wherein the method further comprises, in response to a modeselection to a driver assist mode, employing only one of the brake pedalor the accelerator pedal as the single pedal to provide the propulsivetorque request to the propulsion system and the braking torque requestto the braking system.
 18. The method of claim 16, wherein theinformation indicative of vehicle status comprises vehicle speed andvehicle pitch, and wherein the information indicative of operationalintent comprises pedal position of the single pedal and a rate of changeof the pedal position.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein generatingboth the propulsive torque request and the braking torque requestcomprises applying a propulsive torque map defining a base map ofpropulsive torque based on the pedal position and the vehicle speed, andadjusting the base map based on the vehicle pitch to determine thepropulsive torque request, and applying a braking torque map defining abase map of braking torque based on the pedal position, the rate ofchange of the pedal position, and the vehicle speed, and adjusting thebase map based on the vehicle pitch to determine the braking torquerequest.
 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising dynamicallyadjusting or calibrating the propulsive torque map or the braking torquemap.